The Wilmington Police Department has taken disciplinary action after a use-of-force incident

By F.T. NortonFran.Norton@StarNewsOnline.com

The Wilmington Police Department has taken disciplinary action after a use-of-force incident involving the arrest of a 54-year-old man on May 7.An internal affairs investigation into the arrest of Stanley Aldridge resulted in "appropriate disciplinary action" being taken, spokeswoman Linda Rawley said in a press release issued Wednesday. She said C.K. Crumpler and R.S. Young were the officers who handled the Aldridge call, but she said she is prevented by law from saying how many officers were disciplined, who the officers were or the nature of the action taken.The incident occurred at 9:21 p.m. May 7 when two WPD officers responded to a breaking-and-entering call at a beauty salon near Princess Place Drive, Rawley said. Officers found Aldridge, who fit the description of the burglary suspect, seated on the ground in a parking lot at 4195 Market St. Rawley said police video shows Aldridge being approached by the two officers and after a lengthy verbal exchange, a brief physical altercation erupts. Aldridge was arrested and has since pleaded guilty to resisting an officer and assault on an officer. He was sentenced to 12 months probation, N.C. Department of Correction records show. A charge of drunk and disruptive was dismissed, according to New Hanover County District Court records. In the video released Wednesday, the officers spend about 30 minutes talking to Aldridge, and Crumpler called his estranged wife to ask her to pick him up. "I want to try to get him off the streets. He has got one shoe on. He is drunker than any person you can possibly imagine ... He tried to open up some lady's car with his set of keys. He's so drunk, he thought it was his car," Crumpler can be heard telling Aldridge's wife on the phone. "He's so drunk he couldn't even go to jail."Aldridge is seen wandering around before he is ordered to sit on the curb. Thirty-three minutes into the video, Aldridge gets up from the curb and throws his arms out. "Shoot me. Shoot me," he shouts as he walks toward one of the officers. That officer attempts to handcuff Aldridge and in the process slams Aldridge onto the hood of the patrol car. The two officers then partly carry Aldridge and put him in the backseat."Quit resisting," Crumpler can be heard saying. Rawley said that during a review of the use of force the Internal Affairs Division "noted tactics used during the arrest warranted further investigation." The review is department protocol in all cases where force is used.The video was forwarded to the district attorney's office, which declined prosecution. In a letter dated July 2, Senior Assistant District Attorney Tom Old found Young and Crumpler were justified in their use of force. "The officers took every measure to insure (Aldridge's) safety, and when they attempted to get him to enter their patrol vehicle for transport, he became combative," Old wrote. "I discussed this matter with Mr. Aldridge's legal counsel and he expressed no concern over the nature of the arrest or the steps that were necessary to take him into custody."Despite the determination that no criminal charges would be filed, the Wilmington Police Department conducted an internal affairs investigation into any possible policy violations, and appropriate disciplinary action has been taken internally as a result of that investigation, Rawley said."We are committed to policing our community and the officers of our agency" WPD Police Chief, Ralph Evangelous said in the release. "It is imperative that we hold our employees to the same standards that we hold our citizens."Aldridge could not be reached for comment Wednesday.